Posts Tagged ‘drawing’

It’s been an exciting day – I’ve designed some cherry wood pins and pendants which have arrived and I’ve been busy sticking them together and taking lots of photos!

We started with a drawing of a pair of Great Tits, and with lots of help from my partner Josh and Steve at Clear Cut Creation, I developed a design that Steve laser etched onto 35mm disks of cherry wood.

I’m fundraising for Together Rising, an inspiring charity responding very fast to humanitarian issues around the world. £2 per pin and 20% of each print sale goes to them. You can discover more about their work here.

The latest print and yarn for the fabulous Flower Power Fund are live now, and they are SO pretty.

There is a new knitting yarn launched every month inspired by a different flower, and I’m creating a limited edition print to match. All of the sales are helping to raise funds for Marie Curie. This awesome fundraising idea is all happening over on Instagram and its so lovely to be part of.

I hosted another colourful and messy art session with Busylizzy Winchester today, this time on the theme of bubbles.

My nearly-14-month-old is a big fans of bubbles, so we started the session with some real ones to play with and then we tried to capture their ephermeral loveliness using paint and chalk.

It’s quite challenging to find activities that suit little ones from age 0-4, but I love it when babies just touch paint for the first time or have a go at lifting a crayon or a pencil. For the really little ones, it’s more of a sensory activity than about trying to achieve anything, and they might need to just keep trying drawing or painting before they start making marks and getting into it.

Today there were a lot of babies covered in paint, and some older ones really getting into mixing colours and playing with glitter.

I would really recommend playing with some real bubbles as well and admiring the way they shine and catch different colours in their iridescent skin. They are just so pretty and magical. It’s fun for smaller people to just admire them and try to catch them, while you could talk more about the colours they can see and why they are so lovely with older ones.

You will need:

Something to use as a paint pallette (paper plates work well)

Some pretty coloured paints (blue, white and purple are really nice for this activity)

Some round things to use to make prints with: sponges, pom poms, potatoes, your thumb – anything you can dip in the paint and then press onto the paper

Some card or paper

Some glitter

And if you fancy drawing rather than painting, you just need:

Some brown or coloured paper

Some chalk or pastels

There’s a colouring sheet covered in bubbles to paint or colour below (you might need to save it to print it out, depending on your browser.)

Well, I can’t quite believe it, but yesterday we celebrated my son’s first birthday. Words can’t really capture the intensity of this journey/rollercoaster/whatever cliche fits…it’s been simultaneously magical and terrifying, and I wouldn’t’ change a thing 🙂

We have learnt so much, lost so much sleep, laughed a huge amount and it just feels like the biggest privilege to watch a human grow.

We enter the world so helpless compared to other animals (like those foals that are up and about so quickly after birth) but my goodness, those giant human baby heads are filled with brains that just have the most incredible potential for growth and change. It amazes me to think that my tiny son, who is on the cusp of getting the hang of speech and walking, will one day be able to drive a car…and it amazes me that this is how we all started. It’s also made me realise how much we take for granted the things that many of us can do – things like eating, drinking, movement, speech – these are all really complicated, they take ages to learn and it’s really not surprising that they can go wrong and any of us could lose those abilities. I’ve become so much more conscious of what it means to be human, and how adaptable, clever and vulnerable we are…

Tristan was born on a New Moon, 17 days after his due date. It’s another cliche to say that my partner and I were reborn at the same time, but it’s absolutely true.

A new project has started taking shape. I’m not sure where it’s going yet, but there’s something lovely gathering momentum.

I am asking people for the advice, tips, songs and quotes to help those moving through heartbreak and the end of a relationship. After creating a few illustrations about love a while ago, I felt called to do some more drawings that aim to help in difficult times, something that signposts people to positive, helpful and inspiring resources and organisations, and shares common experiences. It might turn into a book like Dive Down…

Some of my followers have already shared some gorgeous comments and messages and I would love your thoughts too.

What songs, quotes, poems, websites, films, books helped you to heal and inspired you to keep going when things were tough after a break up?

Is closure something someone else can give you, or is it something you have to find yourself?

Do you have any tips for heartbreak insomnia (which is a thing even if that’s not quite the right name for it)?

After my last post, I thought I would upload the rest of the fairies I’ve been sharing on social media so that they have a more permanent home over here.

They’re all qualities and things I have been thinking about bringing into my life the beginning of 2017, when things in the wider world have been feeling a bit less than magical…

⭐️The Adventure Fairy⭐️

Pack your bag. Just a small one. Travelling light is the best way to go. Follow your heart and open your eyes to all the magical sights the world has to show you. This fairy calls you to take a new path, both close to home by being a tourist in your familiar haunts and by wondering far and wide. Get a little dusty. Try something new. Engage your senses and reinvigorate yourself….

⭐️The Solace in Grief Fairy⭐️

When you are heartbroken, numb, grieving. When you are in shock. This small and gentle fairy brings comfort through moments of sleep, the kindness of others, the beauty of nature. She cannot interfere with the process of grief, but she can soften and ease, inspire you to ask for help and bring people to your door unbidden. Her heart hurts with yours. You are never alone. She holds the knowledge that you can survive with your scars, even when you forget. She holds the magic of the life-death-life cycle and asks you to remember that there nothing ends; but everything changes…

⭐️The Hard Work Fairy⭐️

Sometimes you need a bit of grrrrr. Sometimes you just need to graft. Get stuff done. This amiable fairy thrives on sleeves-rolled-up vibes. He’s at your side whenever you slog or sweat, doing it cheerfully with a glint in his eye for he loves to earn his rest. He loves to get muddy so he can get clean. Sweaty so he can sip a cold cider that’s all the sweeter. He brings strength and resolve when you have to dig deep…

⭐️The Sleep Fairy⭐️

Oh how I miss this fairy. She can be elusive, especially for parents of young people. She can also fly away in times of stress or upheaval. But. She *can* be tempted back. She loves ritual, hates caffeine. She likes meditation and mindfulness, and of course exercise. She asks if you have checked your sleep hygiene before you wonder where she has gone… She wants your brain and heart to be quiet so that she can make her home there. And if you are a parent… she hopes to see you again soon, in the moments you can steal to let her in…and on that note, I must go to bed…

⭐️The Warm Water Fairy⭐️

Hot water is magic, you know that right? This mini mermaid haunts natural sources like hot springs but she can be found anywhere there’s a hot tap. She has lazed in Roman baths and Icelandic lagoons. She is drawn to the power of warm water to cleanse, restore, heal and invigorate. Those of us lucky enough to have boilers, showers, sinks and bathtubs experience her magic regularly. She also loves human ingenuity-solar showers, old fashioned fire and steam, any creative solution to summon her magic. Guardian of copper pipes and thermostats. Make sure your plumber treats her with respect…

⭐️Small Celebration Fairies⭐️

Sometimes you need a fanfare to accompany something that may seem little to others but is in fact a huge thing. It could be getting out of bed today, having a shower, achieving something despite a phobia or anxiety making your heart race. Sometimes the seemingly easy, everyday things are hard, hard work. These small but powerful fairies get it. They see your awesomeness. They squeak with joy, throw confetti, shake pom-poms and blow trumpets. They give tiny high fives. Go you. You rock.

⭐️The Naive Optimism Fairy⭐️

This little guy has been hovering around my sketchbook for a few days before I realised who he was. He’s actually been pretty much a lifelong companion of mine… the voice that says: try it, it will be ok, why not do something new? And I’ve had all sorts of adventures with him at my side and his voice in my ear. Life would be tidier, less chaotic, and a whole lot more boring without this little fairy. I promise to keep listening.

⭐️The Witness Fairy⭐️

This super cool character has a number of names from different spiritual and psychological practises that aim to entice him in. He is very helpful to call on when The Mirror Fairy is playing tricks on you. He helps you to take that all important step back, to see and notice your thoughts and feeling as they arrive and ideally before you act on them. Friendly and helpful, he can be evasive, but so worth courting and looking for again. He calls on you to put on your own fairy wings and be your own witness fairy.

⭐️The Impermanence Fairy⭐️

Oh this fairy can seem cruel sometimes. And then kind at others. Really tho, she is neither…she just *is*. 🌸Queen of ‘this too shall pass.’ Cherry blossom goddess. She is the beauty in both birth and decay. The wondrous newness of spring and the rich beautiful mutability of autumn. If we can bear to listen, her message is that everything changes, but nothing ends. It’s just change. Don’t hold on too tightly, but love the things in your world while you have them.

⭐️The Get Up & Do It Fairy⭐️

Sometimes you just need someone to poke you with a stick and tell you to pull your socks up. And he has spectacular long luxurious socks. Lover of To Do Lists and Important Jobs. He knows when you are procrastinating. Strangely enough, he is good friends with the Sleep Fairy, for although he is often the one to rouse you to get to work in the morning, he can also help you do The One Important Thing that is playing on your mind so that, afterwards, you can sleep. He may seem a little cruel at times, but this spiky fairy has your best interests at heart…

⭐️The Sleep Deprivation Fairy⭐️

Unlike the other fairies, this sketchy being isn’t one you really invite into your life (although sometimes she turns up as part of the fun after an amazing party or night of dancing)…she more just kind of…appears. Bleary eyed she blinks from her owl mug. And she doesn’t really do much, other than keep you company when the sleep fairy has abandoned you. She might be at your side on a long dark night of soul searching, or sit with you in a too early morning and recommend more tea/coffee. She is definitely responsible for that slightly spaced out feeling during daylight hours when you haven’t slept… She and I are firm friends right now due to a teething little boy, and every so often she pats me on the shoulder and tells me it’ll be ok…

⭐️The Go Slow Fairy⭐️

Sometimes you need to move fast, and sometimes you really don’t, or can’t, and that’s ok. This fairy and her companion remind us that Slow and Steady can win the race, but often there is no race and we can just calm down and do things at our own pace. Patron of the Slow Food movement. Savourer of tastes and experiences. Owner of her own destiny. You can’t rush this one…

⭐️The Magical Snapshot Fairy⭐️

I was sitting in the car in the drive waiting for the baby to wake up when I spotted this really lovely branch with illuminated leaves catching the setting sun behind them. I grabbed my sketchbook but couldn’t do them justice. But later I realised this fairy was dancing around them, and he dances around all sorts of small beautiful moments during our days, catching our attention and encouraging us to notice. Sometimes this can be at the strangest of moments, when we are busy or bored, or even when we are unbelievably sad or stressed or struggling. He sparkles in the corner of our vision and helps us capture a snapshot of loveliness.

⭐️The Resist Fairy⭐️

2017 on the micro scale has been overtaken by that pesky sleep deprivation fairy. She makes it hard to focus on other fairies, the bigger picture or anything other than getting through the day. On the macro scale tho, 2017 seems to need a lot of this. Resistance. Protest. Challenge. So I’m pondering what I can do to help #bethechange. And I might need to focus on the micro right now, but I’m sure there are things I can do to make a difference.

Valentine’s Day feels like a lovely day to be getting back to work after maternity leave. And I DO love my work; I’m so lucky. I have really missed it, even though I’ve been drawing and doing creative things when I can, often drawing with a baby asleep on me. Not that our one is a big fan of sleep…

It’s been a beautiful, mind blowing, whirlwind of time since I started my leave in May and since Tristan’s arrival in June. We have fallen in love with our little pixie, survived baby’s first cold, first teeth, and delighted in first smile, first giggle, first words…

And my creativity has been bubbling away the entire time, waiting for moments when it can explode out.

One of the most inspiring and joyful things has been how much Tristan, now just over 8 months, likes my drawings. When he was really new, the black and white ones almost hypnotised him! It was wonderful and has inspired some new project ideas I need to find some time to bring to life.

Today though, I have some really exciting projects to get started on, including more work with the wonderful Charlie Locks Skincare who I did some illustrations for as part of their Christmas camapaign.